When I left work it looked like there might be a nice sunset this evening, so I stopped home and grabbed my camera and headed up into the Colorado National Monument. I took some photos from Cold Shivers Point, and the sunset didn’t disappoint. I even caught a sliver of the moon through the pink clouds.
Cold Shivers Sunset by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Colorado National Monument
Thanksgiving | Thursday, November 24, 2011
Amanda had to work for a few hours on Thanksgiving, so while she was at work I decided to head on over to the Colorado National Monument and hike the Old Gordon Trail. It’s one of the few trails in the park that I had not hiked before. I was actually surprised to find that the park rangers were actually working on Thanksgiving. There were also plenty of people in the park, but they all seemed to be in No Thoroughfare Canyon or on the Serpents Trail because I had the Old Gordon Trail all to myself. I didn’t run into anyone else up there, which was nice.
The view into No Thoroughfare Canyon as I hike towards the start of the Old Gordon Trail.
No Thoroughfare View by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
I made a quick stop at the faint petroglyph panel in No Thoroughfare Canyon.
No Thoroughfare Petroglyphs by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
These signs were installed last year when they re-routed the trail into Echo Canyon.
Old Gordon Trail by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Saturday, November 19, 2011
On Saturday I met up with my friend Marty near Moab so that we could revisit a few rock art sites and maybe find some new ones. We met up at the Courthouse Wash trailhead so that I could get some new photos of the Courthouse Wash Panel. The last time I was here it was sunny and the direct sunlight really washed out the pictographs. Since we were there early in the morning this time, everything was still in the shadows.
Here’s a wide view of the full Courthouse Wash Panel. Unfortunately this panel was heavily vandalized in 1980, but conservation work has helped preserve and stabilize the site.
Courthouse Wash Panel by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
A closer look at some of the pictographs that stand out the most.
Courthouse Wash Panel Detail by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Petroglyphs on large boulders at the base of the large pictograph panel.
Courthouse Petroglyphs by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
November Cedar Mesa & Comb Ridge Trip 2011
Friday & Saturday, November 11-12, 2011
Right after an awesome three day weekend in Northern Arizona I was headed down to Cedar Mesa with my friend Jackson for another long weekend over Veterans Day weekend. Our destination and goal for this trip was to explore Natural Bridges National Monument for two days. I had been to the park once before, but at that time we only stayed up on the canyon rim and viewed the bridges from their respective overlooks. This trip we were planning on descending down into White Canyon so that we could begin to explore the area for the abundent ruins and rock art found within the park. This was just the first of many trips I plan to spend exploring the area!
One of the main pictographs I was looking for on this trip was the White Man. We managed to find that one first.
White Man Alcove by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
There’s a few other interesting white pictographs next to it, including a large T-shaped design.
White Pictographs by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
The White Man is larger than it might look in the photos above. Here’s Jackson standing next to it for scale.
Jackson and the White Man by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Friday-Sunday, November 4-6, 2011
The Wave, located just south of the Utah-Arizona state line in the Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness Area, is one of those places that every photographer and hiker wants to visit. It’s hard to blame them because it is such a unique and amazing area. Unfortunately, because of it’s popularity, the BLM has a permit system in place that allows only twenty people per day the chance to experience this remarkable area. If you’ve read my blog for any length of time you might know that I am averse towards any kind of permit when I go out exploring, so in the past I have usually avoided those places. This year I have made an effort to finally visit some of those places that require a permit, including The Maze and the White Rim. A few months ago I decided that I would try to get a permit so that I could hopefully visit The Wave this year, too. Since there are only 20 permits per day, it can be difficult to obtain one. For anyone not familiar with the Coyote Buttes North permit system, ten of the permits for each day are awarded in a lottery three months in advance and the other ten are distributed in person the day before. I guess I was pretty lucky since I managed to snag two permits in advance on my first try. Once I had my permits, Amanda and I decided to make a long three day weekend out of the trip.
We left early on Friday morning and drove down through Monument Valley since Amanda hadn’t been through there before. Shortly after passing through Kayenta we turned off the main highway so we could make a quick visit to Navajo National Monument. We took the short Sandal Trail to on overlook of the Betatakin Ruins. The viewpoint was still pretty far away from the large alcove containing the ruins so I’m glad I had my long lens with me. We were lucky that most of the ruins were all in the sunlight, so I didn’t have to deal with a large shadow in part of the scene.
Navajo National Monument by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
This huge alcove contains the Betatakin Ruins.
Betatakin Alcove by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
A closer look at the ruins found here.
Betatakin Ruins by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Here’s a view of the large alcove in it’s canyon setting for a little better sense of scale.
Betatakin Overlook by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr